Reconnection
by JXMicro
Summary: Two trainers reconnect at college after not seeing each other for 16 years.
1. Chapter 1 -- Primal Encounters

"Arceus damn it all," Sarrah mumbled as she awoke. "I can't stand how early I have to get up for Uni."

As most mornings, what had waked her was her somewhat childish alarm clock, which featured a Zangoose and a Seviper chasing one another around with a loud yet peaceful tune. "Why the hell do I still have that Arceus-forsaken thing?" She wondered aloud.

"Why don't you look at your feet and answer that question yourself?" A male's voice called from the other room. "Now you ladies get up and come get some breakfast."

Sarrah did as was suggested, and remembered why—her partner from the very beginning: Luster. Luster was her shiny Zangoose her uncle had given her when she had just begun her Pokémon journey. In Sarrah's mind, Luster was the closest thing she had to a mother, as her mom and dad died when she was only four years old.

"C'mon Luster. It's time to get up for Uni," She called gently to the sleeping Zangoose, waking her up "Zan…"

"I'm very well aware that you aren't a morning Pokémon, but that's too bad, now get up."

The still half-asleep 19 year old sat up and stretched, yawning. She groggily trudged over to her wardrobe and picked out her typical outfit: a pair of extremely faded blue jeans, beige tank top, and a deep violet denim jacket that stopped at her navel. After pulling these out, she grabbed a towel, bra, and pair of panties from another drawer and headed to the bathroom adjacent to her room for a shower

A good twenty minutes later, she emerged from her room fully dressed with her silky silver hair flowing behind her. "Good morning, Uncle Xavier!"

"Well, it's about time my little sugarplum came out for breakfast," he joked. "Volt made pancakes," he gestured towards the Ampharos standing by the griddle.

Thanks, but I don't think I can eat right now," Sarrah said, clutching her stomach.

"Phar…" the Ampharos whined, slightly heartbroken.

"No, Volt, it's not like that! Your cooking is actually quite good! I'm just a little nervous, that's all." She reassuringly told the Ampharos that was still sulking.

"What are you worried about, sugarplum?" James asked his niece, with a tone of worry in his voice.

"Oh, it's nothing, just some boy in—"

"Some boy? What's his name, dear?" James interjected, cutting off Sarrah's sentence.

"Well, his name is Daryl, but that's about all I know, as we haven't gotten much interaction in our first three days."

"If he ever breaks your heart, blitz is both a great bodyguard and a shoulder to cry into." Blitz was the Typhlosion given to James by the resident professor in Johto. "Well, you best be off before you're late to class. And if you're late, there will be no staying out late, unless you are accompanied by Volt, Blitz, or me."

"Yes, Uncle Xavier. I'll be in class before the bell. Bye" She called as she grabbed her keys and ran out the door, before running back in and grabbing her school bag. "I nearly left the house without this. I'm so damn stupid sometimes!"

"Volt, you are aware that she is one crazy kid, right?" James asked his Pokémon, which was starting to clean up the mess.

"Amph," Volt nodded, affirming what James had just said.

"Oh, and Luster, before you go can you promise me that you will keep a close eye on her today? She seems a little out of it over that Daryl guy. Thanks, hun," He added as she was walking out the door.

Walking out towards her uncle's pristine black 1968 GTO, Sarrah called back to Luster, who was reluctantly following her, due to being extremely tired. "C'mon, I know you're tired, but we need to get going!"

She got into the driver's seat, while Luster took to the passenger's seat and passed out. She then took the 3 mile drive up to the student parking on the college campus where she parked quite close to the school.

"Luster, wake up, we're here." She gently cooed to the Pokémon lying asleep in the other chair.

"Goose…" the Zangoose yawned, slightly hesitant to get started with her day. However, she remembered what James had asked her to do and woke up anyway.

Sarrah's first two classes went by without a hitch, but when her third came along was when she started thinking about _him_. She couldn't help but get distracted about his stunning, light blue eyes and his luscious, spiky, jet-black hair. And you don't want to get her started on his rippling pectorals. Truth be told, Daryl Neruda Haven was the man of every woman's dreams. _But why did the name Haven sound familiar?_ She pondered to herself, lost within her own thoughts. When the bell sounded to head to fourth class, she had to be nudged by her teacher, Professor Sylva, to even recognize what was going on.

"Dear, it seems you've been drifting off. Are you okay?" the gentle woman asked genuinely.

"I'm fine, just a little tired is all." Sarrah responded, her cheeks glowing crimson, blatantly revealing her embarrassment.

"All right then dear, just don't be late to your next class," The elder said, dismissively.

Sarrah gathered her things and walked with luster to her next class, where she did not see the normal professor there waiting to greet her. Instead, what she saw was a portly young woman with ratty hair standing by the chalkboard with her name written large and fancily. She decided to ignore the fact for now, and just went to her assigned seat. Her normal professor didn't call roll, so she could theoretically have been sitting wherever she pleased, but she liked where she was situated—Close to the front of the class.

As the bell rang, the woman decided to speak. "Welcome students, my name is Professor Hatfield, and I will be your substitute for the day as it seems that Professor Hale is not able to make it. Now I will call roll, so please pay attention.

The woman started calling off names, in the meantime, Sarrah's mind was drifting again, and only came back to the real world when she heard Daryl's name called. Afterwards, she started to daydream again.

As the stout woman reached her name after running through most of her classmates, including Daryl—why _did_ 'Haven' sound familiar? Sarrah was having butterflies in her stomach. Nobody really needed to know she was "famous"—if famous was the word for it. "Micro, Sarrah" the portly woman called. Silence. "Is Sarrah Micro present today? She asked a second time. This time, a quiet "present" could be heard squeaking from Sarrah's direction as every jaw in the classroom dropped.

"There's no fucking way she's a Micro" Daryl said under his breath.


	2. Chapter 2 -- Nervous Interaction

The rest of the class went fairly normally, with the exception that everyone was too shocked, and Sarah too shy, to get any work done. Luckily for Sarrah, this was the final class of the day, so she didn't have to worry about her "secret" as she called it getting out until Monday, as it was a Friday. She was half asleep as that final 2:30 bell rang, signaling their dismissal. Due to the loud stimulant, she sprang up, grabbed her things, and bolted out of the classroom and down the crowded hall towards the student parking area. She rushed enough that Luster had to put in effort to keep pace. She had made it five feet from her uncle's car when she heard a familiar voice call for her.

"Sarrah, wait up!" She heard Daryl call in his strong, silky voice.

There was no hiding now. He had spotted her and was approaching quickly. On top of that, there was nowhere to hide.

He was now close enough to have a private conversation, but not too close. He didn't want to push it this early. She was nervous now, slightly cowering at his presence. She looked up, meeting his eyes. What she saw was true wonder staring back at her in those soft, gentle baby blue eyes of his. She saw his sculpted chin, his soft, wavy black hair outlining his features extravagantly. She could tell that he had a crush on her, but she couldn't see in those dreamy, expression-filled soul windows what he saw in her.

"Oh, h-hey, Daryl! How are you?" she asked shyly. She could hear the nervousness in her voice, but wasn't sure if he could.

"Oh, me? I'm well, thank you for asking," he replied politely. "But what I'd like to ask you would take too long for a quick conversation like this. So how about we meet up some time? Just let me know when you're available."

This was her chance. "Well, I'm available right now," she said with all of the confidence she could muster. 

"Well, we can go to the coffee shop down the—"

"Iwasthinkingmyplace," she said quickly, cutting him off.

"U-um what?" He asked, sincerely confused.

She took a deep breath. "I was thinking that…um…we could, y'know, just maybe have the conversation over dinner at my house tonight."

He stood there in shock. _S-she just asked me to her house for dinner?_ He could tell that she was anxiously waiting for a reply. "Okay then, we can do that."

She squealed in delight. "I've just got to make a phone call real quick." She pulled out her PokéNav and called James.

"もしもし, Professor Micro speaking."

She rolled her eyes at her uncle's greeting. "Hey, Uncle Xavier."

"Oh, hey Sugarlump. What's up?"

"I'm having a friend over for dinner, is that okay?"

"Yeah, of course, hun. Who is it?"

"It's that boy I was telling you about."

"Very well. I should be home soon. It's been a dry day here. See you then, Love."

"Bye Uncle. See you later then." With that, she hung up and turned to face Daryl. "Well, shall I drive?"

"If you wish. So this is your car?" He replied casually, gesturing towards the car.

"Well, it's technically my uncle's but it will be mine when I finish school."

They got into the car and she started up the engine. _I can't believe he's in my car and soon he'll be at my house._ Sarrah though, smiling ecstatically.

They rode in silence. Not an uncomfortable silence, but one that neither of them knew how to break, aside from Daryl's occasional comment on the vehicle's performance, such as "wow this rides smooth," or "the power windows don't even make a sound." At these outbursts, Sarrah would chuckle to herself as she looked at him with longing in her eyes. _This is partly why I like him so much_. She thought to herself as she absentmindedly pulled into their long, winding driveway.

"Wow! I've never seen it this close before!" Daryl exclaimed, breaking Sarrah out of her trance.

"Hmm? Oh, the house," she said, meekly.

"Yeah, it's pretty cool," he replied, awestruck as they got out of the car.

Sarrah was about to reply when she saw a large, blue creature dashing towards them. "Duck!" She exclaimed, doing so herself.

She wasn't fast enough, though, and the three of them lay in a pile. She could feel Daryl's stomach as his shirt had ridden up when she landed on him. She didn't have much time to embrace it, however, as what had landed on them stared licking her face and purring.

"Blitz! Off!" She reprimanded.

"Ty…" It returned, sulking away as it did as she commanded.

"Oi, Blitz. Don't be upset, you're the one that thought it wise to pounce on her." Judging by the voice, Sarrah knew her uncle was home already.

She then realized that she was still laying on Daryl, and that there was something lying on her breast.

"Meep!" She exclaimed, scrambling off of him. She looked over at him. His eyes were soft and dreamy as he stared off into space.

_D-did I just touch her boob? Awesome!_ He thought to himself, _I hope she isn't mad…_ With that second thought, he sat up looking at her apologetically.

"Don't worry about it," she said, offering him her hand. "I'm sure it wasn't done on purpose. Now grab my hand."

He looked at her skeptically.

"I'm helping you up, dipshit," she barked, playfully.

"Hey now, be nice to the boy and invite him in already," James called from inside the house.

Sarrah sighed as Daryl took her assistance. "Would you like to come in?" She gestured towards the porch.

Daryl nodded and then looked up in awe as the manor glimmered in the afternoon sunlight. It was a grand house, maroon in color with white accents. It stood three stories tall, with balconies and windows galore. There were flower bushes on every sill. The front doors were lavish and ornate, with detailed carvings of Cresselia upon the knobs. The door knockers resembled Rayquaza. 

As they made their way along the path and up the porch, the manor started to smell of Grilled mushrooms and tea. _Strange combination, _he thought, _but whatever. I kind of like it._


	3. Chapter 3 -- The Talk

Daryl took a deep breath and stepped over the threshold. He was extremely nervous and hoped to Arceus that James and Sarrah wouldn't notice. The house was warm and comforting. It was panted in reds, with the walls painted a rosy cream color. There was gentle warmth wafting through the air, radiating from the glowing hearth. Upon the walls hung pictures and paintings of Sarrah, of James, of the two together, of legends and of landscapes. But then Daryl's eyes focused on a single picture—it was Sarrah with a man and a woman. Sarrah seemed to be around two. The man looked like James, but Daryl could tell that it wasn't. Daryl assumed that the woman in the picture was Sarrah's mother.

"I see you've noticed my décor, son." James said. "Please do sit down, so I can get to know you more."

Daryl then looked at the furniture in the room. He saw a lush armchair where James was seated, smoking a pipe. There was a large sofa opposite the fireplace. Then he saw the burgundy loveseat where Sarrah was sitting. He chose there to take a seat. He didn't know why—he just felt compelled to do so.

"So, may I get your name, son?" James asked interrogatively as he sat his pipe upon its stand.

"My name is Daryl Neruda Haven, sir," Daryl replied respectively.

"Haven, you say? That's frighteningly familiar…" James pondered drifting into thought.

"Really? We're not that well known around here. Well, not nearly as well known as the Micro name is, sir."

"Thank you for the flattery, Daryl, but do please refrain from calling me sir. I'd much rather you call me James. However, if you don't feel comfortable with that level of casualty, you're free to call me Professor Micro."

"O-okay, sir—err, James." Daryl said, still feeling awestruck that one of the most revered professors in Hoenn had invited him into his estate, and now asking to be called by his first name.

"Now if you two would please excuse me momentarily…" With that, James left the room leaving Daryl and Sarrah alone.

The tension in the air was so thick it could be cut by a blade—which James just happened to have a few of those displayed throughout the room. As it started to become unbearable, Daryl heard what sounded like footsteps. Shortly after, James dropped a heavy-looking book onto the coffee table in front of them.

James wiped off the dust to reveal the title: _Devon Corp. Employee Records, 1998-1999_. Daryl was amazed that James could get his hands on records as old as those. He was about to ask why he had them when he felt a gentle pressure burrowing into his right arm. He looked over and noticed Sarrah hiding her face in his arm. He then felt another sensation: wetness. He put two and two together and suddenly realized that she was crying. His first instinct was to embrace her.

"Are you okay, Sarrah?" He asked, concerned.

"Y-yes I-I'm okay," she replied between sobs.

Daryl looked over to James, who seemed to be readying an explanation for Sarrah's outbursts.

"She has trouble with her emotions. It's been caused by all the shit she's been through in her life," James reasoned.

"If I may, what started all of it?" Daryl queried, utterly curious. The look he saw on James's face made him regret asking.

"Don't worry Daryl, I know you just curious. The answer lies in the Slateport Disaster of '98."

Daryl's eyes widened. He hadn't thought about the disaster that killed two innocents since he was 14 and had to learn it for a test.

"Those two…They were?" He stammered, flabbergasted.

"Yes, in fact they were. I lost my little brother and my sister-in-law that day. But I feel we should dodge the topic for now."

Daryl simply nodded and held Sarrah tighter. James turned back to the large, black book in front of him. He began to mutter as he flipped the pages.

"Ah, yes," he said after a moment of searching. "Haven. It's no surprise the name was familiar. Your father worked with Sarrah's parents at Devon Corp. when Sarrah was little."

"Oh, really? That's pretty interesting. You see, dad never talks so me about anything that goes on at his work." Daryl said with a touch of disappointment in his voice.

"I'm sure he has his reasons, son," James reassured him.

"I suppose you're right, James," Daryl sighed. _I just wish he'd at least tell me why._

As if on cue, a Donphan rolled from the kitchen into the quaint living room.

"Ah, Hurly! How's my good boy doing?" James cooed, rubbing the Donphan's hide.

"Don-Donphan!" The Donphan exclaimed happily, motioning towards the kitchen.

"Oh, I suppose I'll let them know," he said to the Donphan. "Well, it's time for supper you two. Daryl, please do tell us more about yourself over supper, if you will."

"I suppose I could stay," Daryl pondered.

The trio got up and walked into the kitchen. As Daryl crossed the doorway, he stood awestruck. He took in the sights: the lavish shelves, embossed with carvings of the Eon Pokémon, Latios and Latias, atop them decorative plates adorned with the Hoenn countryside, a place which Daryl didn't often get to see.

Daryl loved the sights of the rural parts of Hoenn. He had grown tired of the monotonous grey and tan tones of Rustboro City.

When he came back to his senses, he saw the table and its occupants. He saw James sitting there, calculating Daryl's every move. He also saw Sarrah, sitting there timidly. He could tell she was blushing and trying to avoid eye contact.

He sat across from Sarrah. For the next ten or so minutes, they sat and ate in silence. When he finally steeled his nerves, he spoke:

"Well, I suppose it's time I tell you about myself. My name's Daryl—Daryl Neruda Haven," he said nervously. He then took a strong, deep breath. "I've grown up with my dad, and don't know much about my mom. Dad and I live in Rustboro, because he works for Devon, as I've said before."

He paused, weighing his options. "And well, James, I've got a bit of a crush on Sarrah."

Sarrah blushed as red as a Growlithe. She spoke up. "To be honest Daryl, I've had a crush on you too."

As she said this, Luster walked in with her tail coked in an 'I-told-you-so' pose.

Daryl spoke again after he took a bite of his meal—slow cooked Magikarp. "Well, Sarrah, would you like to go on a date with me? With your permission of course, James.

"I-I guess so, Daryl. Can I, Uncle Xavier?"

"Of course you can sweetie. I can't keep you locked down forever." James said as they finished their meal.


End file.
